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Topic: useless gift ideas (Read 6432 times)

our family has started doing a white elephant gift exchange. I have a hard time finding generic gift ideas. I tried candy last year. It was a no go. In general few people ended up with gifts that they used. I voted for a secret santa this year, but we are doing white elephant again.

This year instead of aiming for "something anyone would like" I am aiming for "something no one has any practical use for".

I want to put some fun things in a bag that really have no practical use, but I am having trouble thinking of things. I expect that some of it they will be momentarily enjoyed and then probably never touched again. But I don't want to give a bag full of junk that someone will open and enjoy nothing.

So I'm trying to balance "completely useless, but good for a laugh" and "not practical but I used it"

With that in mind I've already nixed a usb pet rock that I had seriously been considering. It was too expensive to throw in for just a laugh, but not useful enough to consider otherwise.

Some ideas I'm considering are:

Useless, but good for a laugh (mostly dollar store items):Pink boaAdhesive mustachesUnicorn horn for a cat (the package tells me cats love them and we all have a cat)

My dad once bought me a very anatomically detailed ceramic bull. About 12" long and 6" high. It's both hideous and hilarious. He bought it in all seriousness, having a warped gifting sense. It's perfect for a white elephant and we've been saving it for that purpose. So I say go to an antique store and find the most inappropriate, funny thing you can find.

Logged

"From a procrastination standpoint, today has been wildly successful."

A Peanut Pusher. That is what my family always told me they were getting me for Christmas when I asked. But they never did. So two years ago, I took some brass wire and bent it into a strange shape, put a fancy calligraphy label on it and gave it as a family gift! We put it out on display last year, and will continue to.

The local dollar store sells pairs of "fuzzy socks" for $1. Except they are striped and in neon colors like yellow and green, pink and green, etc. Nobody in their right mind would want to wear them because they're scratchy due to the little strip of "silver" on the ends of the fringed yarn. They're also a bit too small for most adults, and a bit too large for most kids. Perfect useless present.

Chinese finger traps. A bag of paper shreds (you know, the paper stuff people put in packages as "dressing"? Just a bag of that, and nothing else)You mentioned a pet rock. Just go out, pick up a rock, paint a face on it, and "sell" it as a solar-powered, off-the-grid, ultra-green pet that never needs feeding, watering, walking, etc. (Although for a giggle, I've seen one packaged with a tiny folded-newspaper 'litter box' and care instructions)I've seen "Fake chest hair" small containers of pet treats, especially if you know nobody owns a cat/dog (or fish food)I've seen plastic gloves that were blown up, and then drawn on to create smiley faces, turkeys, reindeer, etc. A small sheet of bubble wrapfly swatterToilet paper cozy (you know, the things you put over rolls of TP to "hide" them. My grandmother made truly hideous ones in the 70s.)corn removal padsSnowman poop (bag of marshmallows)